Thursday, February 18, 2016

Need to Call Bella's Mom

Dominic at least a few times a week will tell me, "need to call Bella's mom!" Who is Bella you may ask? Here is the answer to that question:


I first met Bella shortly after Dominic's first grand mal seizure. She and her mom approached me at the Meijer grocery store back in June of last year as I was grabbing a milk jug out of the dairy case. Dominic and Bella go to the same middle school.  I have never forgotten what Bella's mom told me that day, "I would love to get our children together and be in Dominic's life however much you will let us." Bella's mom has the most generous heart and has passed on those values to her three children.  Bella and Dominic made sugar cookies last summer:


When Dominic had a choir concert at school and neither Lauren or my husband could attend, Bella and her mom surprised us after the concert!



The number one thing I admire about Bella is how incredibly compassionate she is. There is a respect and admiration between Dominic and Bella which is quite unique. This past Sunday, when Bella, her mom and Bella's little brother stopped by with a decorated heart-shaped cookie and a homemade valentine, Dominic was uncharacteristically SHY.

 

He would come over, say, "hi," and then run away. In a lot of ways, he was acting like a "typical" preteen boy, not like an 11 1/2 year old boy with Autism :) I foresee this relationship and friendship lasting a very long time. 

Presume Competence

Since we have traveled outside of the United States since Dominic was very small, we have had to get him a Children's Passport every fiv...